State governments to share cost of rail projects

New Delhi, Feb 12: The state governments in Karnataka, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana have agreed to share the cost of several rail projects in their respective areas in order to catalyse creation of rail infrastructure for overall national growth, Railway Minister Mallikarjun Kharge told parliament Wednesday.

Presenting the interim railway budget in the Lok Sabha, Kharge pointed out that “while efforts of the government to provide precious financial resources for growth of Indian Railways would continue, the phenomenal investment needs of rail infrastructure cannot be met entirely through Gross Budgetary Support, Internal Generation of Railways and Market Borrowing”.

The Railways, he said, have started targeting private investment in rail infrastructure to bridge the gap.